We recently published a list of 11 Stocks on Jim Cramer’s Radar. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Powell Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:POWL) stands against other stocks that are on Jim Cramer’s radar.
Jim Cramer, the host of Mad Money, recently shared his thoughts on the role tariffs play in the market. While he acknowledged that Wall Street generally despises tariffs, he admitted to having a somewhat different perspective, expressing that he actually likes tariffs, but only when their application is certain.
According to Cramer, uncertainty surrounding tariffs contributes significantly to market instability, especially for sectors that are ill-prepared to absorb the impact of new trade policies. One sector that Cramer singled out as particularly vulnerable to the effects of higher tariffs is retail. He pointed out:
“Retail, are you kidding me? We stopped making things in this country years ago. As part of the bargain we have with Mexico and China where Americans get cheap goods, much cheaper than we could possibly make here, in return for wiping out almost a hundred percent of our manufacturing capacity.”
The arrangement, Cramer explained, was a deal embraced by both Republicans and Democrats alike. He likened it to a “reverse poltergeist” situation where jobs were moved, but the foundational industries remained behind. The shift left many former manufacturing workers, such as seamstresses and laborers skilled in operating heavy machinery, without the means to return to their old positions.
As Cramer put it, there is no longer any real expertise in these areas in the U.S., and even if there were, it would come at a significantly higher cost to produce locally. He stressed that, given these circumstances, it is nearly impossible for U.S. retail to compete in a space that relies heavily on imports. He added:
“I don’t want to be too dire about this everyday lower price initiative by the President of the United States, but because this is a stock show, I have to tell you something, at times I’m gonna say it, I’ve been missing old President Biden.”
He remarked that, despite Biden’s apparent disdain for business interests, at least the former president remained consistent in his stance, even if he did not fully understand the stock market. In a departure from his usual commentary, Cramer even expressed a certain nostalgia for the policies of former President Biden.
“Here’s the bottom line: Wall Street hates tariffs, but what it hates even more is inconsistency and unpredictability. I’m actually pro-tariff. That’s not the point. I think the market would be in much better shape if President Trump used what I would call rapidly escalating tariffs. You start them at 15%, you go up 5% every single weekend and you stop at 50% because at least we then have some clarity and what’s coming and more important, when it will occur.”
Our Methodology
For this article, we compiled a list of 11 stocks that were discussed by Jim Cramer during the episode of Mad Money aired on February 27. We listed the stocks in ascending order of their hedge fund sentiment as of the fourth quarter of 2024, which was taken from Insider Monkey’s database of over 1,000 hedge funds.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).
Powell Industries, Inc. (POWL): ‘A Really Good Company - I’m Just Confused,’ Says Jim Cramer!
A circuit breaker installed in a control panel illuminated by bright LEDs.
A caller acknowledged that Powell Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:POWL) is a great company but highlighted that the stock keeps going wrong and asked what they should do with it. Here’s what Mad Money’s host had to say:
“You know, that, that is, that is just a really good company. I totally agree with you. I don’t get it. I just, I mean we’ve done, we’ve done takeouts on it… I mean look, it, does it have the big revenue growth that I want? Yeah. I’m just confused. I have to come back again. We did a takeout on it earlier. I’m gonna go back and huddle with my chief scientist Ben Stoto. We’re gonna figure out what the heck is going on here.”
Powell Industries (NASDAQ:POWL) focuses on the design, production, and maintenance of custom electrical equipment and systems, including substations, motor control centers, switchgear, and other associated components.
Overall, POWL ranks 10th on our list of stocks that are on Jim Cramer’s radar. While we acknowledge the potential of POWL as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than POWL but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
